Labour should categorically refuse to back demands from airline workers for a pay rise of about 10% in order to show it is serious about seeking negotiated outcomes to disputes, David Lammy has said.
The shadow foreign secretary said Labour had to act like a party of government and that responsible governments believed in negotiation and compromise.
The party has been criticised for not backing the RMT in the current dispute that triggered the rail strikes, but Labour frontbenchers have rarely dismissed union pay demands as firmly as Lammy in his interview on the BBC’s Sunday Morning show.
Lammy was asked if he supported the BA check-in staff at Heathrow who have voted go to on strike over management’s refusal to reverse the 10% pay cut imposed during the pandemic.
“Many of us might want a rise of 10%,” Lammy said. “In truth, most people understand it’s unlikely that you’re going to get that.”
Asked directly if he supported the check-in staff, who are members of Unite, Lammy replied: “No, I don’t. It’s a no. It’s a categorical no.”
Asked why he would not support them, he replied: “Because I’m serious about the business of being in government, and the business of being in government is that you support negotiation.
Referring to the rail dispute, he said: “This government isn’t negotiating. This government is not supporting reaching a compromise.”
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